Eternal Darkness: Wonderland's Deception
by Dragonicora
Summary: Alice travels to Wonderland, and mistakenly arrives in Alex's world. Now the two have to work together to fight the Red Queen and the eternal darkness. ON HIATUS.
1. Page One

Introduction

Okay, I based this off of two games: Eternal Darkness and American McGee's Alice. I've started at the beginning of both stories, though I've made Alex's world into Alice's Wonderland, so the elements of both stories with be included and explained along the way. Something else I decided to do, instead of chapters, is pages. A story about the Eternal Darkness is just another chapter in the Tome, so I'm making each of my posts into the pages of the chapter. Anyways, happy reading, I guess. 

Page One

Alice fell down a large, vast hole onto the solid ground. Standing up, she looked around. She was in a small, contained room, with portraits and diagrams all around, and a small desk in the corner. A large book was placed on the top of it. Alice's instincts told her not to touch it. She looked up from where she came, but the portal had closed. Sighing, she went back to her inspection of the room. A short, slightly tapered sword hung on the wall beside one of the pictures. She walked over to it and picked it up, testing the edge on her thumb. It started to bleed; Alice smiled. She tried the door, but to her dismay, it was locked. She looked around the tiny room. "Wonderland's become quite strange... And quite small..." she said with a sigh.

----------

Alexandra Roivas paced around the foyer of the mansion, thinking. _It's been two weeks since the attack... And yet, nothing..._ she thought, rubbing her forehead. _Maybe I should just take this into my own hands... The police are proving themselves useless..._ She stopped and glanced around the room, wondering where she should begin. _Well, Gramps was found in the library, so..._ She went over to the library door and opened it, staring into the quiet room. Pain overcame her as thoughts of her grandfather filled her head. She took a deep breath, and walked inside.

----------

Alice rammed herself against the door, but it would not budge. Again she tried the doorknob, and again, it would not open.

"Having troubles?" uttered a taunting voice from behind her. She turned around to face the Cheshire cat. He was thinner than she remembered, almost like a skeleton, his grin stretching wide across his face.

"I suppose you could do better, Cat?" she retorted. "It's not like you have anything to say that would aid me. Your tongue speaks in riddles, and riddles do not open locked doors."

The cat looked her over with curiousity. "You're more stubborn than I recall. Perhaps riddles do not suit you."

She sighed, and looked back towards the door. "Well let's hear it, then."

The cat raised his eyebrows. "The answer doesn't always lie in front of you, Alice. Sometimes you must look past the veil of your vision and trust in what's beyond."

Alice rubbed her forehead, trying to decypher what the cat had said. "This is pointless..." she muttered to herself. The cat grinned, then vanished.


	2. Page Two

Page Two

Alex walked right past all the bookshelves, knowing that she'd find little - if anything - there. She instead went to the area in the back of the library where she knew that her grandfather had worked, shivering. There was a draft coming from somewhere. Looking around, she found the source of the draft: a bookshelf right next to the wall. _That's odd_, she thought, examining it. _Nothing that can help me here..._ She turned back to the rest of the area, looking around. The only other point of interest in the room was an old grandfather clock. She examined it, curious. The hands weren't moving. She thought back to when she first had heard the news about her grandfather, ignoring the sadness that came with the memory.

"Three thirty-three..." she muttered, turning the hands on the clock to read the time that she had stated. She heard a noise of something falling into place, then, from the corner of her eye, she saw the drafty bookshelf slide into the wall to reveal a passageway. Alex looked at it curiously, then followed it. A doorway lay at the end of the corridor, and she heard a muffled voice from the other side. Frowning, she opened it, coming face to face with a young woman.

Alice eyed the newcomer warily, obviously not used to women wearing pants or dark colours. "Are you my jailer?" she asked. A voice in the back of her mind reminded her of what the Cheshire cat had said, but she ignored it. _This person can't be trusted_, she thought to herself.

"Jailer? What?" Alex shook her head. "I've never even seen this part of the house." She looked the woman over. "What are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question," Alice said. "What business do you have in Wonderland?"

"Wonderland? What the?" She shook her head, then a thought came to her. "Where were you two weeks ago at 3:33 A.M.?"

Alice looked away. "Standing in front of my house as it burned down with my parents inside it."

"Oh, I'm so sorry... I thought..." Alex hesitated. "My grandfather was murdered here at that exact time..."

Alice glared at her. "I am no murderer." She sighed. "My name's Alice Liddell, and I'm looking for a white rabbit. Have you seen him?"

Alex rubbed her forehead. "First Gramps died, and now I apparently have rabbits running around his house. This is turning out to be a wonderful year," she muttered. "I'm Alexandra Roivas, I... I'm staying here temporarily." She motioned towards the room. "Could I get in here?"

Alice nodded, and moved out of the way. "So... This is not Wonderland then?"

"Not when you're in my shoes," Alex said, looking around the room. "Hm, what's this?" she thought aloud, examining the large book on the desk.

"I would not touch that, if I were you," Alice said when she saw what Alex was looking at. "It does not give off a good feeling."

"Nothing does anymore," Alex said with a sigh, sitting down at the desk.


	3. Page Three

Page Three

Alex took a look at the large, leather-bound book that lay on the desk before her with some interest. "The Tome of Eternal Darkness..."

Alice raised her eyebrows. "Cheerful," she said simply.

Alex gave a small nod, then opened the book. Before she could read anything, however, a series of visions came to her mind. A large monster, purple in colour, with long sharp teeth and multiple eyes, a strange temple that glowed a with a pale orb of light, a pillar of stone in the direct center of a vacated city, a giant creature, much so like a worm, lunging at the man standing in front of it, a vast pool of water, filled with ants and insects the size of giants, and a small, white rabbit shrinking down to the size of a mouse, standing in front of a small hole. A cry of surprise escaped her lips as she fell backwards in her chair.

"What did I tell you?" Alice said in a matter-of-fact sort of voice, glancing around the room. "Is there a way out of here?"

"The outside door is barred..." Alex replied, rubbing her forehead, then turned back to the Tome. "Well, would you like to help me with this, or are you just going to utter useless comments?"

"Trust in what's beyond..." Alice whispered to herself, realizing now what the cat had meant. "All right," she said, moving over beside Alex. When the young Roivas opened the Tome again, she saw not words, but a swirling mix of colours. She stared at it incredulously, not quite sure of what to make of it.

"A portal," Alice said, somewhat awed. "I haven't seen one of those in... Well never mind. Care to see?" She held out her hand to Alex, a small smile on her face. Alex took it, then turned back towards the Tome. Alice touched her other hand to the portal, and they both were divulged into the swirling colour.

Alex kept her eyes shut during the journey, afraid to see what was going on. Alice, however, stared wide-eyed at everything, reliving the moments of her past.

When Alex opened her eyes again, she found her and Alice standing inside a large, ancient temple that looked as dated as the Roman times. Examining the room they were in, Alex saw a short, broad man wearing Roman attire walking into the next room. "Welcome," she whispered to Alice. "to ancient Persia."


	4. Page Four

Page Four

"Who is that man?" Alice asked, regarding him with uncertainty and distaste.

Alex shook her head. "I don't know." She glanced around nervously. "I don't think there's any way to go in here. Should we follow him?"

"I suppose we have no choice," Alice replied. She sauntered off in the direction that he had, Alex close behind her. They came just in time to see the man climb down a ladder in the center of the room. There seemed to be no other way to go, so Alex and Alice climbed down after him. As they walked on, they saw two of the rotted corpses from the ground raise up and shuffle slowly towards the man. Alex's eyes widened. She thought to warn this man, though she was unsure of whether this man was friend or foe, nor was she sure of whether he could see them or not. Alice seemed quite eager to continue on.

"Rather hasty, child." They turned to face the Cheshire Cat. Alex stared at him, her eyes wide with astonishment.

"I suppose you were telling the truth then..." She said, a hint of surprise in her voice.

"Did you not trust me?" Alice glanced at her, taken aback.

"Well what was I supposed to think?" Alex asked, exasperated. "You show up in a secret area of my grandfather's mansion two weeks after his murder, with blood on your dress, and you were carrying a sword!"

Alice nodded her understanding, then turned back to the cat. "Why have you come?" she enquired.

The cat eyed Alice. "Hesitation isn't always the downfall of man, Alice. If you are too quick to think, following your heart's desire may be your downfall." His intense gaze moved to the Roivas girl. "Your instinct is true, Alexandra. Don't let your memories interfere. Reject what you know, take on what you feel is right, and you will prevail." He shot them a wide, stretching grin, then vanished.

"Cryptic..." Alex muttered. "I was never good at riddles."

"Me neither," Alice said, looking around. "Well, shall we continue?"

"Yeah, I don't think there's any other way," was the reply.

They moved onward. The path was quite clear, considering there was normally only one possible direction. After a while, they came to a narrow corridor that forked off in either direction, an unbarred door at both ends.

"Which way?" Alex asked.

"Left," the dark-haired girl answered, already heading in that direction. Alex quickly followed behind her, and they both entered the next room together.

"That almost looks like the Roman man we saw earlier," Alex muttered to herself, glancing at a large statue as they walked past. It depicted the torso of a man wearing Roman garments.

The next room contained naught but three stone pillars surrounding a circular beam of yellow light, and a stone panel in the corner. Alice walked forward with every intention to step onto the ring of light.

"Uh..." Alex glanced around nervously. "Maybe we should try the other room first?"

"Oh get over here," Alice snapped, taking Alex by the hand and thrusting her onto the ring of light, stepping on it herself. Alex felt a slight jolt from behind her navel, then the next thing she knew, she was standing in a narrow passageway that led to a small, circular room. Alex could make out the faint outline of a man lying down on the floor. She walked towards him carefully.

"Um, hello?" she said to the panting figure on the floor. A surge of blue electricity passed through him. Alex hesitated. "Sir?" she asked, kneeling down and placing a hand on the man's shoulder. The man looked at her, meeting her gaze. Alex screamed. This was not the face of a man, but one of a skeleton. She could smell his rotting flesh, could feel death looming out of him, and his piercing blue gaze stared within hers, and she felt as if he could see right into her very soul.

Alex clamped her eyes shut as swirling colours flew around her and Alice, and she felt herself fall onto the chair. She opened her eyes, breathing heavily, to see the page from the Tome staring back at her.


	5. Page Five

Page Five

"Pious Augustus," Alex muttered bitterly. "The 'Chosen One'. What is this?"

"Seems to be some sort of story," Alice remarked.

"But why would my grandfather be keeping a story like this? It doesn't make sense..."

"Perhaps he wanted to test the wits of his granddaughter," Alice said, grinning slyly. Alex shot her a look, then turned the page in the Tome.

"Dementia," Alex muttered. "Weird name. I wonder what happened there..."

"Wait, what was the place?" Alice asked excitedly, examining the chapter page. "That is in Wonderland!" A few moments later, the page turned into a vortex of colours. Alice grabbed Alex's hand hastily, thrusting her other hand onto the vortex, and they vanished in a swirling mist of colours. Alex kept her eyes open for this journey, watching with interest as the colours danced around her.

The vortex dropped them onto solid, dirty ground. There were vines all along the walls and part of the ground, and flowers unlike any normal kind sprouted from the earth. Alex got up nervously. "I've never been in a place quite like this before..." she said with wonder.

Alice stood up too, brushing the dirt off of her dress. "Indeed. Wonderland's become quite strange lately."

A white rabbit wearing a black dinner jacket, a black tophat and a monicle came a few feet in front of them.

"Rabbit!" Alice exclaimed. "It has been a while, has it not?"

The rabbit gave her an exasperated look. "Please don't daudle, Alice, we're very late indeed," he said in an annoyed tone, then hopped off.

"Well, he seems like a nice person," Alex said somewhat sarcastically.

"You'd be surprised," Alice said. "Well, shall we continue then?" Alex nodded, and they walked on. They reached a big gap, lava filling the middle. Alice ran and jumped. Her skirt filling with air was the only thing that enabled her to cross. Alex hesitated.

"Uh, Alice? How am I supposed to get over there?" She asked, glancing at her black pants.

"Run, and jump. It shouldn't be too difficult."

"Easy for you to say..." Alex muttered to herself. She took a few steps backward, then ran over to the edge and jumped.

Alice saw the Roivas girl jump, though she didn't see her land. "Alex...?" she asked nervously. No response. "Alex!" She ran over to the edge of the bubbling pit of lava, hoping that by some miracle her friend was still alive.


	6. Page Six

Page Six

"Never again..." Alex muttered to herself. "I told you that I couldn't jump that."

"Well you're fine now, aren't you?" Alice told her.

"Yeah, but if you weren't there to pull me out..." She shook her head. "Nevermind... Thanks for saving me." The dark-haired girl nodded, and handed Alex a red, diamond-shaped vial. "Uh, what's this for?"

"Drink it," Alice said. "It restores your health."

Alex drank it, feeling immediately better. "Where on earth did you find this?"

"Trapped in some vines earlier on," was the reply. "Come on, we shouldn't linger."

They walked onward, coming to a small series of wooden planks over a vast, bubbling lake of murky brown water. A knife hovered over a dim yellow flame in the middle of one of the planks. Alice nodded to Alex, indicating to the Roivas girl that she should take it. Alex complied, taking it carefully and nearly dropping it in suprise of its coolness. The grin of the Cheshire Cat greeted her from the top of the landing that lay at the end of the plank.

"Your knife is necessary, but not sufficient. Always collect what's useful. Reject only your ignorance, and you may survive." With that, he vanished.

"Alex," Alice called. Alex glanced at her. "Do not fall into the water. It will burn you as acid would."

"Okay, thanks for the warning," Alex said, gazing at the bubbling liquid. She winced in pain as something shot at her arm. She looked up to see two rather thin men wearing suits depicting the Queen of Hearts.

Alice swore. "Card guards," she muttered angrily, throwing her sword at one of them. Alex ran up onto the ledge, closely followed by Alice. One of them swiped at Alex with his spade. She lept back to dodge the attack, but lost her footing and plunged into the sinuous liquid below. She cried out in pain as her flesh made contact with the hissing liquid, and she hurried to get herself out of the water. When she made it onto solid ground again, she saw that Alice had finished off the guards.

"Here," she said, handing Alex another red vial. "You have to be careful." Alex nodded, drinking the potion. Alice turned around to see the white rabbit standing in front of a doorway. She ran to it, but before she knew it, the rabbit had shrunk down to the size of a mouse.

"Just like I saw in my vision..." Alex whispered. She looked around as she saw the swirling colours return, and the next thing she knew, they were standing once again in the secret study of her grandfather's mansion. Alice paced around the room, muttering to herself. Alex stared at her curious behaviour.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

"The Queen of Hearts..." Alice said impatiently. "She's returned. Why else would her guards lurk around?" She paused. "Would you know of a way that I could make myself small?"

Alex shook her head, flipping the page in the Tome. "Pandemonium," she muttered. Staring at it, the vortex did not start as usual.

Alice stared at it. "Why is it not working?"

Alex examined the page more carefully. "Because it's not the next page..." she said. "Look, there's something missing."

Alice looked around the room. Her eye caught on a piece of parchment hanging on the wall. She took it down carefully and handed it to Alex. When it was placed in the Tome, the swirling colours returned to the page. Alex held her hand out to Alice, who took it, and when she placed her other hand on the page, they began to see the swirling colours around them as they journeyed back into ancient Cambodia.


	7. Page Seven

A/N: Okay, I just figured I'd respond to whoever read this already.

Stormsworder: Heh, I know you. Well then. Thanks for replying. 'Course you already read it. And that would be because you know the silly rules of that site. And the silly margins. Glad you liked it.

Rock Raider: Thanks. Glad you liked. And here you go. More. :P

Page Seven

"What news do you have for me, Pious," Ulyaoth asked in his usual commanding voice.

The roman grinned. "We have the co-operation of the Red Queen," he answered confidentally. "The Great Ancient, Mantorok, is bound, and will soon wither."

"And what of the white rabbit?"

"We have uncovered a prophecy that shows where and when he will meet his demise." Pious' grin grew even wider. "You need not worry."

"You have done well, Pious," the Ancient remarked. "Let's see how long this reign of luck will last."

"I will not disappoint you, Master."

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"Alexandra?" Alex blinked, finding herself on the ground of an ancient temple.

"W-What... What happened?" she asked. She stook up shakily, holding onto Alice for support.

"I don't know. You seemed to have passed out," Alice replied. "Are you all right?"

"I... Uh... Pious," Alex muttered. She shook her head to clear it. "He was talking. To someone... Something... I don't quite remember." Hesitating, she turned around. "Who's there?"

Alice glanced around the dark temple. She frowned, walking slowly around the four stone poles in the middle. "Who's that?" she asked when she saw what the post had been hiding.

Alex moved to where Alice was, squinting in the direction of her friend's gaze. A thin Cambodian girl was sitting on the ground, reading aloud out of a large book. Her eyes widened. "She's reading out of the Tome!" As the Cambodian closed the book, she heard the door to the outside of the temple slam closed.

The girl stood up, the Tome of Eternal Darkness under her right arm, looking determinedly around the room. Her eyes fell upon a large, gold statue in the middle of the room. The statue had four arms and a strange necklace around its neck. She took it, placing it around her own. There was another loud noise, similar to when the door had closed. She turned around to find the door on the right hand side of the temple closed also. "Well, I guess there's only one way left," she thought aloud, and entered the only open door.

"What do you suppose this means?" Alice asked, kneeling down and fingering a tile in the center of the four pillars.

Alex eyed the tile. It depicted a strange, purple symbol in the middle of three others. "It looks..." She frowned slightly. "The outer symbols are placed the same sort of way that the recycling symbol is. Never mind," she said at Alice's confused expression. "Blue over red, red over green, green over blue. They must represent the three Ancients... If Pious chose blue, which if I remember right is Ulyaoth, then I think that's going to be what he'll fight us with."

"The red stands for physical stamina..." Alice muttered to herself, fingering Chattur'gha's symbol. "The green stands for mental stamina... The blue for magickal..." She looked up at Alex. "You remember that red vial I gave you in Dementia?" Alex nodded. "Well, there are others like it... Filled with green and blue liquid. That's what they're for: to restore one to peak condition."

Alex rubbed her chin. "Can they be used in attack?" Alice shook her head and stood up. "Oh, because I was thinking, maybe-" The distant sound of knives met their ears. Turning around, Alex realized that the sound was coming from the room that the Cambodian girl had gone through. "Should we go see what's happening?"

"I don't think so. She got through it once, this is just a flashback. If we interfere, we don't know what could happen."

"Ah. Good point." Alex glanced at the door opposite the open one. "Too bad we couldn't split up. This looks like a big place, and I don't feel the need to stay here any longer than we have to."

"Well, if the mechanism is triggered by something being around the statue's neck, then maybe if we just..." Alice took a few steps towards the statue, examining it more carefully. "Yes..." She placed her hands around the statue's neck. Adding a bit of weight to its shoulders, she heard the sound of something falling into place. A few seconds later, the sound of the other door opening met their ears. "I can't get through that way. You go. I'll go through the other way."

"But-"

"Just go." She grimaced slightly as she felt resistance from the statue. "I can't keep it open for much longer."

Alex nodded and ran through the open door into the dim room. As soon as she was through, the statue's four arms all wrapped around the dark-haired girl's throat. Letting go of the statue's neck, she fought against the four arms, gasping for breath. The statue's eyes bore into Alice's own. A few seconds later, it let go, returning to it's original position. Alice rubbed her neck, breathing heavily. She stood up shakily.

"What just happened?" she asked aloud.

_Statues don't move_, her mind told her.

"No... I'm not going mad..." She ran towards the open door on the left, trying to ignore her thoughts.

_It's the first sign of madness, talking to yourself._

"I am NOT going mad!" Alice shouted. And with that, she ran through the open door and into the darkness beyond.


	8. Page Eight

**A/N:** Okay, I know that this is the longest chapter yet. About 3 000 words longer actually. The reason? I didn't want to have three chapters in the same place. Also, there's a lot that I put in this one chapter, which I guess was kind of stupid. Oh well. Enjoy. 

Rock Raider: Yeah, I have plans for the Cheshire Cat. And while that's an interesting suggestion (actually, it sounds better than what I'm doing), well, I'll let you see how it turns out. You don't really know until page nine, but yeah. Anyways. I'll shut up now.

Page Eight

Ellia exited the dark, trap-filled corridor and into the next room, pausing for a moment in the narrow doorway to bandage a wound on her left arm. "I should have known there would be traps," she muttered. "Good thing those arrows weren't poisoned." She jumped. The door behind her had slammed shut. "What the-" She examined the stone slab curiously, but found no way to open it. A groaning noise from behind her startled her. Turning around, she experienced a sudden headache, as if something was affecting her mind. Standing in front of her was something as large as she was. Its flesh was decayed and blue and it was missing several parts from his face and body. Its arms were limp but slightly raised in her direction as it shuffled slowly towards her. It let out a piercing shriek that made her head pound. She pulled out her short knife and decapitated it. Somehow, the creature was still moving. Another slash sent it to the ground, but she hit it again to make sure it was dead. The door from which she came opened again after she did that.

Rubbing her aching forehead, she examined the room. There didn't seem to be any more bodies lying around, nor any undead creatures. There was an engraving of the sun in the middle of the floor. The dancer examined it with interest. Beside a shrine was a bronze necklace on a vase that looked surprisingly like the one around her neck. She picked it up, putting it around her neck also. The flickering of candles caught her eye. "Candles?" she whispered. This place hadn't been inhabited for years. She ignored the other engravings on the stone walls around her and approached the source of light. There were three tall candles there, the one in the middle the tallest. Two pillars the height of the centre candle surrounded them. The two on the right were lit. An inscription on the wall behind it depicted the sun in the noon position. Thinking of something, she extinguished the right candle, leaving the center one lit. The two pillars sunk into the altar. She heard a grinding noise from behind her, and the second door in the room opened slightly. Seeing only one way to go, she left by the way she came. The necklace had given her an idea. Now she knew how to access the other half of the temple.

----------

Alex watched the door close behind her, knowing that she was trapped. _Hopefully Alice will find out something from the other room_, she thought. Glancing around the dim room, she found nothing of real interest. There were multiple engravings on the walls around her of people and creatures, and one in the center of the floor of the rising sun. There was an altar in the right corner of the room with three candles. How the left one was still lit, she didn't know. As she was about to walk through the open stone door, a swirling mist of colour surrounded around her. Recognizing it as a vortex, she stopped. This time, the colour didn't sweep her into its depths. Instead, it seemed to be expelling something. Or someone. Squinting into the vortex, she saw a dark figure emerge. The stranger fell onto the floor as the swirling mist of colour vanished. Alex advanced towards him carefully.

"Um, hello?" she asked. The stranger lifted his head, his dark eyes searching. As he looked at Alex, his eyes grew wide with relief.

"Please… You've got to help me," he said urgently. His voice was low and raspy, spoken with a Spanish accent. He sounded somewhat desperate. Alex decided to trust him, for the moment. Holding out her hand to him, he took it, letting her help him up. The young Roivas evaluated the newcomer. He was average height, strong build, and seemed not to be carrying weapons of any sort. His dark brown hair was cut around his ears and neck. His clothing was ripped and torn, almost as if he'd been in a fight. Alex judged that he were from an earlier time, but definitely from Spain. She relaxed a little.

"Can you help me?" he asked again, distracting Alex from her thoughts.

"Uh, right. What exactly do you need help with?"

"I-I have no idea where I am, how I got here…" He glanced around the room nervously. "This isn't Madrid, is it?"

"I don't think so…" Alex replied. "I wish I could help you, but I have no idea how I got here either." _I shouldn't trust him just yet_, she thought, excusing her lie mentally. "Uh, maybe we should try to find a way out…?" Glancing back at the stranger, she realized she had forgotten something. "Who are you, anyways?"

"My name's Alejandro," he said at once. "Alejandro Dantes." His dark eyes darted around, almost as if he was trying to cover for something. Alex frowned. His eyes weren't any shade that she recognized. They were dark, almost gray, and somewhat familiar. Shaking the feeling that she had seen this man before, she turned and entered the dark hallway beyond.

----------

When Alice entered the room, it was almost total blackness. The only source of light was a flickering candle on a shrine in the corner. She could see the faint outlines of pictures on the walls, but it was too dark to tell what they depicted. In the center of the room was a picture depicting some time of the day. According to the wall behind the altar, it showed some time near dusk. She was overcome by a strange feeling, as if she was being observed by an unseen foe. Hearing the shuffling of feet, she pulled out the gladius she had found in the secret study, and turned around. From what she could tell, there stood four rotten, decaying zombies; exactly like the ones she had seen when they were in the Roman temple, safe for the fact that their eyes glowed an eerie green colour. As she met their piercing gaze, her head began to ache. Decapitating one of them, she noticed something else in the room. A few seconds later, another zombie had lost its head. Another cut from Alice's gladius sent the first corpse once again to the floor. After a few seconds of looking around, she realized that all the other zombies had fallen.

"Who are you?" she called out to a dark figure in the room.

"I should ask you the same question." The stranger stepped into the light, proving to be the young Cambodian Alice and Alex had seen in the main room of the temple. Seeing her up close, Alice realized how young the girl was.

"I'm called Alice," she answered carefully. "And I'm looking for a way out of here."

"We're here on similar purposes," the dancer remarked. "My name's Ellia."

Alice looked over Ellia cautiously. "How do I know that you're not a part of this?"

"Do I look like one of them?" Ellia replied, indicating the fallen corpses.

"I suppose not. Do you happen to know where the exit is?"

The Cambodian glanced at the doorway. "The only way seems to lie beyond the other door."

Alice walked over to the doorway, peering out at the statue. "The door's locked, and the statue seems reluctant to let us in."

Ellia pulled off one of the three necklaces on her neck. "I know a way. We should go." Alice nodded, exiting the room, closely followed by Ellia.

----------

Alex walked warily into the dark hallway. She had heard stories about the hallways in the old Egyptian tombs and she was certain that this would be no different. Sure enough, after she stepped forward a few paces, three large swords shot out of the wall.

"Damn." She quickly jumped back to avoid the swinging blades.

"Look before you leap," Alejandro said in a sly voice. Walking closer to her, he eyed the floor. "For you may find this game a lot more dangerous than it seems."

"Uh, yeah," Alex muttered. _Okay, now he _definitely_ sounds familiar. Where do I know him from…?_ Glancing at the floor, she realized that the part of the floor she had depressed was a lighter colour than the rest. "Trap panels…"

"One thing about mechanical traps, Alexandra, is there's always a way to turn them off." Alejandro examined the wall for a moment, and then pressed one of the bricks. The knives ceased immediately. Alex didn't move.

"I don't remember telling you my name," she said, staring at the stranger.

"You must've mentioned it sometime." He glanced around nervously. "Should we cont-"

"No, wait a second." Alex grabbed him by the arm, pulling him to face her. "Who are-"

"Just STAY OUT OF IT!" Alejandro yelled. She let him go. Not saying anything, she turned and ran down the hallway, hitting a few traps but not caring. "Wait, Alex. Alex! Damn…" he muttered, and ran after her.

----------

Alex ran into the next room, breathing heavily. She didn't know why she got such a reaction from Alejandro, but she didn't like it. _He knows who I am_, she thought bitterly. The floor pattern, which she hadn't noticed before, was completely black. A half-open door lay on the left side of the room, yet she knew no way to open it. Another shrine was placed in the centre of two walls. The picture behind the three candles this time, however, was also completely black. An idea coming to her, she blew out the two candles that were lit, and the door opened completely. The room was now completely black. Alex found it hard to find her way to the open doorway she had seen only moments before. The only way she knew that she had stepped through to the hallway was when she accidentally activated one of the traps.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!" she moaned. Ducking her head, she ran through the patch of arrows that now shot out of the walls. About halfway through the hallway, however, she tripped over something that lay in her path. As looked at it, she realized that it was a corpse. "Eeagh!" Shivering slightly, she stood up. There was a flickering light here created by some invisible torch. An altar was placed here, on it, a wooden blowgun. Alex picked it up and examined it curiously. A few moments later, the floor beneath her feet gave way and she found herself plunging into the darkness below.

Wincing slightly, Alex stood up, brushing herself off. She seemed to be in some sort of basement area in the temple.

"A secret passage in the temple?" she asked herself, glancing around.

Noise from outside the small area she was in brought her to her senses. She ran out and saw that there were two blue, decaying zombies attacking a man in the corner. She shot one with the blowgun to her found, and it turned a poisonous green shade. "Poison darts? All right!" she said with a grin, but the grin quickly faded from her face as the intoxicated zombie swung at her. She spun to the ground from the force of the blow, her knife falling out of her belt. She grabbed it and swung at the undead's stomach.

It seemed almost petrified for a moment, and then it gave off a strong humming noise. A flash of electricity surged through it. Alex, not liking what was happening, tried to escape but the zombie had her cornered. After a few moments, she was thrown into the wall by the force of the zombie blowing up in her face. She winced as she stood up. Remembering something, she ran over to the man she had seen earlier. He lay on the floor, motionless. Taking his pulse, she froze. He was dead. Angry with herself that she didn't manage to save him, she turned towards the only available exit in the room and continued forward.

----------

Alice stared warily at the golden statue as Ellia drew near it, refusing to step close to it. A part of her mind reminded her that it was inanimate, but the shock of having it come to life before kept her on her guard.

"What?" Ellia asked, looking at her. "It's just a statue."

"I am not fond of statues, that one especially," Alice muttered, her face flushing slightly. "Just open the door already."

Ellia raised her eyebrows but said nothing. Turning back to the statue, she took the bronze necklace from around her neck and placed it on the statue's own. Instantly, the stone door opened with a loud _slam!_ Glancing towards Alice, she nodded.

"See? That wasn't so bad," the dancer said with a grin.

"Yeah, right," Alice said under her breath. "Shall we get on with it, then?" Not waiting for a reply, she ran through the open door.

"Wait!" Ellia called, running after her.

Back inside the temple entrance, the statue opened its eyes, its mouth forming into a grin. "Perceptive," it mused, and then it started to laugh, its rusty voice echoing throughout the temple.

----------

After making her way through another trap-filled hallway, Alex found herself in an almost round room. A mural lay on the circular half on the room. She ignored it, not really having a great appreciation for art of any kind. There was a slot in the center of the room.

"Hm… It's missing something," she determined. "What, I wonder." Seeing no visible answer, she exited the room. Muttering to herself angrily, she came back into the room and went through the door directly beside it. "Don't see why they have to put these doors so darn close to each other," she said to herself.

Another trap-filled stretch of floor led to another half-circular room. A large flaming pit lay in the centre of this particular one. Other than that a mural on the circular half, nothing of interest lay in the room. A few zombies of different alignments were battling each other, but she ignored them and exited, this time through the right door.

Alex walked down a short corridor that was mercifully trap-free. However, that didn't stop her from keeping her eyes on the floor, searching for lighter tiles. The room she saw next was large, though a large purple beast filled with eyes and teeth took up a great part of it. Her heart skipped a beat. _Just like in my vision_, she thought.

"Stop! Don't go near it!" warned a voice from behind her. She turned to see temple guards. Suddenly, tentacles shot from where the beast lay, devouring them whole. Alex gasped, slightly horrified.

"So, you are reduced to feeding on flesh and bone, Mantorok," a cold voice uttered from the entrance. "How the mighty have fallen. You will surely fester for millennia to come. A slow, and torturous fate, for thee…"

"You…" Alex whispered. She instantly recognized the man as the Roman soldier from ancient Persia, though this person was less than a man, rather a skeleton. His cold blue eyes gave her chills. He looked her over.

"I believe we have met before," he remarked with a smirk. "You had best leave, or you will find yourself as food for the Dead God. What a painful end for such a beautiful girl," he added slyly.

"Ah, Pious, so we meet again." Alejandro stood by a large statue, twirling a long, slender, metal object like a baton in his fingers, an amused smile on his face.

"Dantes," Pious breathed, his voice poisonous.

Alex looked between the two men. _If looks could kill_, she thought, _then I would _not_ want to be the one standing between them right now. I wonder where they met before…_

"I'd get out of here, if I were you, or things might turn out the way they did last time," Alejandro said, his face laughing, yet his eyes cold.

Pious looked enraged. "I'll have you know that in a few seconds I could easily-"

"- get beaten to a bloody pulp again?" Alejandro supplied.

The Roman's glare looked as if it could melt metal. Not saying another word, he turned and left the room. The man by the statue smirked.

"Thought so," he said, satisfaction written all over his face.

_Well, at least I know he's not on the bad side_, Alex thought to herself, still not saying anything. As she realized what Alejandro was doing, however, she began to question what she had just concluded. He thrust a glowing object at her, which seemed to be pumping something. With his baton, he magickally sent the purple heart into her body. She screamed in pain for a moment as electricity shot through her, and then it quickly subsided.

"What did you do!" she asked him angrily.

"That, which I just sent through you, was one of Mantorok's hearts," he replied, indicating the monster behind him. "Though since you are not the Chosen of this era, it won't affect you. As it sends itself through to its proper saviour, she will know what to do with it." He waved the baton at her. "I have something to take care of. I'll be with you again shortly."

"Yay," Alex muttered sarcastically. Alejandro grinned, then vanished.

----------

Ellia walked slowly into a trapped hallway, looking around. It had been a while since they saw anything of use. The room they came to next had a familiar engraving of a sun on the middle of the floor.

"It's no use," she sighed. "We're going in circles."

"Alex?" Alice called, ignoring the dancer's statement. No response came. "Alex!" she yelled again desperately.

"You've been calling for the same person for about ten minutes," Ellia remarked. "I don't think this 'Alex' can- EAH!" The young Cambodian fell to her knees, pain shooting through her body. She could've sworn she saw a flash of purple electricity roll down one of her arms, but she couldn't be sure.

"_You are one of the chosen many, flesh and blood…_" an echoing voice told her. "_It is now your destiny to fight the Eternal Darkness. Within you now is one of Mantorok's hearts. The Essence of the Corpse God. To some it is a source of great power. From those people you must defend it; lest they use it to destroy what little brightness your world has left in it. Guard it well…_"

The voice faded, and the pain was gone. Ellia stood up, glancing around the temple for a moment. A few seconds later, she vanished from the air, leaving Alice alone.

----------

Alejandro appeared in a large, half-circular room; the first one Alex had visited. Twirling the strip of metal, he examined the slot in the centre of the room. He placed the strip of metal in carefully and pulled it upward. The sound of something falling into place met his ears. He grinned. A few seconds later, he vanished again.

----------

Ellia found herself in a large room. A beast, much like the one in her book, lay in the centre of the room. A blonde-haired girl, wearing black clothing, lay in the centre of the room, looking at the dancer with curiousity. Not really in a conversational mood, she walked past her, around the great beast also. An open door was at the other end of her path. Feeling determined, she entered it. As she looked around, she found herself at a dead end. There was a golden statue, quite like the one in the larger room, but nothing else. She turned around to leave, but was stopped by the appearance of a large, skeletal creature. He gazed at her reproachfully.

"You fool," he said calmly. "You should not be here." His patience seemed to grow suddenly thin. "Where is the Essence of Mantorok?" he asked suddenly. She didn't respond. "Where is it? I will not ask again, child." He waited for a moment. "Very well, then. You will succumb to the horrors of oblivion."

A ball of blue energy formed in his left hand, and it shot into Ellia's body. She screamed in pain and fell in a heap in front of Pious, dead. The Roman turned around, coming face to face with Alex. One hand was over her mouth in shock, her eyes wide, as she stared at the smoking dancer's body. Pious grinned.

"You… You monster," she whispered with disgust. He opened his mouth to reply, but before he could do so, the swirling colours flew around her, and she found herself once again being swept into a vortex. The next thing she knew, she was in the Secret Study of the Roivas Mansion, Alice right beside her.


	9. Page Nine

Rock Raider: Yeah, I have some plans similar for when the worlds start to come together. Though those are really great ideas! Zombie card guards… Who would've thought?

Page Nine

"What the-" Alice glanced around the room, a confused expression on her face. "Now how on earth did I end up here?"

"It's because the chapter finished," Alex replied.

"Finished? What?" The young Roivas handed the Tome over to Alice, its pages turned to Ellia's chapter. Alice quickly skimmed the last few paragraphs. "Blimey, so it did." She frowned, looking over the entire thing.

"Something wrong?"

Alice stared at the page for a moment. "We weren't mentioned."

"It might have something to do with the fact that _that_ wasn't our chapter," Alex replied with a grin.

"Perhaps," Alice replied. "So where's the next chapter page?"

"So impatient…" Alex said, grinning wider and shaking her head. "I don't know, look around the room. Maybe it's hidden somewhere." Glancing around, she saw a strange flickering glow illuminating the room, yet she couldn't determine its source. _That certainly wasn't here before_, she thought to herself.

"Candles," Alice remarked, staring at a small shrine similar to the shrines from the chapter. "I wonder what significance they hold. But I don't remember them being here before, do you?"

Alex shook her head, walking over to the altar. A picture behind it showed the setting sun. Of the three candles, the first two were lit, depicting the exact opposite of the picture. "If I'm right," she muttered to herself, picking up the centre candle and lighting the last one from its flame, "then all we need to do is…" After blowing out the first and second candles so that only the last one remained lit, a compartment underneath the shrine opened up. "Aha."

"There's some sort of… package, or… or… A message tube?" Alice handed the cylindrical object she had found in the revealed compartment to Alex. "What do you suppose we're supposed to do with that?"

"There's something inside," the Roivas noted. She opened it up and pulled out a page made out of the same yellowing parchment as the Tome was. "Another chapter, perhaps?"

"Well, what does it say?" Alice asked excitedly.

"I think you're enjoying this a bit too much," Alex remarked dryly. She picked up the Tome, which Alice had set on the floor earlier, and set the page inside it. The torn edges sewed itself back into place, and the familiar whirl of colours appeared on the page. The two girls each placed a hand on the vortex, letting the colours sweep them away in its depths.

They next found themselves on top of a wooden platform above the corrosive lake, a long rope a few feet away from them. The platform was small but sturdy, though when Alex looked around, she found nothing but dead ends.

"Where do you suppose we go from here?" she asked Alice.

"Do you see that lower set of platforms over there?" Alice pointed directly to the right, indicating the platforms leading to Yür Mine. Alex nodded. "Well, that seems like our best bet. We could probably reach there with this rope." Alex looked down at the murky liquid below them, then nodded again somewhat nervously. "You first."

"What?" Alex gasped. "There's no way… I mean, I can't-"

"Go!"

The next thing the Roivas knew, she was being pushed off the ledge by her dark-haired friend. Out of instinct, she flung out her arms and grabbed onto the rope, though not as quick as she would've hoped. A sudden yelp escaped her mouth as her left foot sunk into the hissing lake. She climbed up the rope as quickly as she could, glaring at Alice.

"Hanging ropes are as good as step-ladders," supplied the Cheshire Cat amusedly from a thick post beside the platform, "for those who know how to use them."

"Thanks," she told the cat bitterly.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" Alice asked. "Get across already."

Muttering something about ungrateful people, Alex swung across and jumped onto the lower platforms, swinging the rope back to the higher area. Alice, on the other hand, made a clean jump straight from the rope onto the wooden planks.

"Don't you dare say anything," Alex told Alice, noticing the smirk on her friend's face. Alice shook her head in amusement.

"There's a man waiting for us by Yür Mine, so we'd best continue." With that, Alice turned and headed forward, closely followed by Alex.

A small, dwarfish man wearing torn clothes and smoking a pipe came into view a few moments later. He stared at the two girls, who he'd obviously been expecting.

"Why do you pursue me to this deserted place…?" he asked as soon as they reached him.

Alice smiled. "To benefit from your wisdom."

"Even blurred vision is valued by the blind. If I were clever, would I cower in this slag heap?" The Mayor shook his head. "I'm not wise, girl… I've just grown old."

"I wish to get very small, no bigger than a mouse." The Liddell teen stared at the man. "Word around these parts is that you're the man to ask."

"That's all you want? Oh yes, I could manage that… For a price." The man took a puff of his pipe, breathing in the heavy smoke.

"We have nothing of value," Alex stated.

"You both have nerve, and health. Mine are nearly gone. I've seen too much suffering… And I smoke too much, you see," the man said, indicating the wooden pipe in his hand.

Alice nodded. "What must we do?"

"Follow the shaft along the mines," he told them, indicating the path behind into Yür Mine. "A skool that lies beyond holds the means of making an elixir for your desire. I will be waiting for you in the performance room." With that last statement, he vanished in a twirling mist of sparkles.

"So, tell me again. Why do we want to shrink?" Alex asked as they made their way into the shaft.

"We need to find Rabbit," was the simple reply.

"But why?"

Alice stopped, turning to face Alex. "Aside from being an old friend of mine, he's probably the only person who knows what's going on that doesn't tell us in cryptic riddles like some _othe_r furry creature we know. He's the smartest person I've met," she added with wry respect. Alex wondered what a simple rabbit could've done to put that tone into her friend's voice, but she didn't question it.

"We should probably get going," the Roivas said simply. Alice nodded.

A few moments later, they reached a mine cart on a track, filled with rocks and soot. The track seemed unstable. Alex determined that it probably couldn't hold too much without breaking. The shaft itself looked as if no one had used it for years, making it very unsafe.

"We're not going on _that_, are we?" Alex asked nervously.

"You bet," Alice said with a smile, pulling Alex onto the cart and sitting down herself a few moments later. It didn't seem to want to move, so the Liddell resorted to pushing hard against a large boulder with her foot in the opposite direction. The cart slowly started making its way along the track, but sped up in speed almost at once. The result of using it after years of its retirement caused large boulders to fall from the ceiling, destroying parts of the track completely and narrowly missing the girls.

"Alice!" Alex yelled, her voice barely audible above the noise of the cart. She was staring at something at the end of the track, fear clearly written upon her face. "Alice! We need to get off this cart!"

"Why?" Alice yelled back.

"Because there's a dead end! If we stay on, we're going to go over the edge!"

Alice looked over to where Alex was gazing, gave a small yelp, and jumped off the cart, landing in a roll. Alex jumped off a few moments later, just barely making it off in time to miss the edge. They both stood up and brushed their selves off, looking around. There seemed to be a huge stone square surrounded a very large building, though only the top half of it was visible from where they stood. Alex glanced up into the night sky, squinting slightly.

"Uh, Alice?" she asked. "What is _that_?" A small dark figure in the sky looking somewhat like a very large dead raven was flying towards them. The same insignia the card guards wore was plainly visible on its stomach. Alice scanned the sky, and then gave a small groan.

"Boojum," she muttered, pulling out her gladius, which she had tied onto her apron. Alex followed suit, arming herself with the knife she, too, had tied onto her clothing. "Okay, when I give the signal, thrust your sword into its stomach." The Boojum, having discovered the two girls, flew almost directly in front of them and yelled, sending a gust of wind in their direction. "Now!" Alice yelled. Both blades impacted themselves into the Boojum's torso. It screamed and then burst into flames, leaving both a red healing vial and their swords at the ground. Alice placed the vial in her apron and handed Alex back her knife.

"All right, we need to get into that large building, so check around and see if you can spot any open windows that we could enter by," Alice directed, then turned to the left to examine the skool.

Alex walked off in the opposite direction, searching the sides of the skool for any entry points. After turning the corner, she spotted an open window, but something else caught her eye. What seemed like a large deck of cards was floating in yellow-green flames a few feet away from her. They held an insignia similar to the one worn by the card guards, but instead of a heart, there was a large "A." Curious, she walked over and picked it up.

"52 pickup is a staple of juvenile humour, but when the deck slices and dices, it's no laughing matter," uttered the taunting voice of the Cheshire Cat. Alex turned around, but all she saw was the cat's fading grin. Inserting the deck into her right pocket, she focused her attention back to the open window.

"Alice!" she called. "I've found a way in!" Her dark-haired friend ran over to her as quickly as she could, breathless within seconds. Her face brightened as she saw the window, and immediately jumped from the ledge, crawling into the school.

"Hey, wait for me," Alex said, following Alice.

"Sorry," Alice said sheepishly. "Anyways, we need to find the performance room."

After walking through the only door in the room, they found themselves standing in an even larger room full of doors and many exits. "Which door?" Alex asked, taking a quick count and coming up with eight red doors in total.

"Well, since that one on top seems to be hyperactive, I'm ruling it out. And those three there are boarded up, which leaves one on each level, so I suggest – ow!" A red card made contact with her shoulder, opening a small gash.

Impatient, Alex took out her own deck and thrust a handful of cards in the card guard's direction, who faltered immediately. "You suggest…?" she asked as if nothing had happened.

Alice stared at the cards in her friend's hand, but thought better than to ask at the moment. "Let's try the bottom one first."

"All right," Alex agreed.

The room proved to indeed be the performance room, as the Mayor was waiting by the stage. Several deformed children seemed to be putting on some kind of show, consisting solely of a mixture of deranged laughs and cries. "Well?" Alice asked the man.

"There's a book in the library which contains the recipe. Consult the _Book of Bizarre Things_. I'll go ahead and open the passageway." The elderly man vanished again in his swirl of sparkles immediately afterwards.

"He's very quick about it," Alex remarked as they exited the room. "So whereabouts on the second floor was the library?"

"Second door on the left," Alice replied, staring at a far corner of the room where the card guard used to be. "Listen, I think there's something over there. You go check out the library, I'll be right there behind you."

"Sure," Alex said, confused at that odd statement. She climbed up the stairs in the centre of the room and turned right towards a series of doors, entering the second door.

Alice turned left, stepping over the corpse of the card guard, and jumped over a large fireplace to a small ledge in the corner. What looked like a croquet mallet was floating in a pale green flame. Alice took it with interest.

"Here's a riddle: when is a croquet mallet like a Billy club?" Alice turned around to face the grinning form of the Cheshire Cat. "I'll tell you," he said, his face darkening maliciously. "Whenever you want it to be." The cat vanished immediately after he said this. Alice didn't bother to ponder the cat's message while she re-traced her steps and entered the library, as she found most of what the cat said to be drivel. She found Alex gazing in shock around the room, a dead corpse next to her feet.

"Alex?" she asked. The Roivas jumped then turned to face Alice, not realizing that she had come.

"You've never been anywhere else in the Roivas mansion, so you probably wouldn't know," Alex told her.

"Alex, you're not making any sense."

"I've been here before," Alex said, shaking her head in amazement. "In fact, I've read most of the books in here, with my grandfather. This isn't any ordinary library, this is my grandfather's library!"


	10. Page Ten

**AN: **Hey there peoples. So yeah, sorry for the delay and all. Even though I only have, um, two readers, I think? Anyways, here's the next chapter. Ironically, in Word this is ten pages long. But here's a warning: major writer's block in this chapter, so some things may sound forced. But anyways, enough yapping from me. Oh, and the french part? It was originally written in a more advanced form, but then when I looked through the french-english dictionary to see what it directly translated to, it didn't quite have the same meaning, so yeah, I had to change it to basic french.

**Page Ten**

"So, the girls have gone into another world again, I see? Excellent," said the Red Queen happily. "You have done well. Does she trust you?"

"Not entirely, but she will soon. I believe my little spat with Pious will have helped, however," Alejandro replied.

"Good. Does she suspect anything?"

"She might," he admitted. "I saw a trace of recognition in her eyes, but I doubt that she's managed to place it yet."

The Queen of Hearts frowned. "Be sure not to alert her to the proper conclusion just yet. We will need to manipulate it to separate them, and it cannot be done prematurely."

He nodded. "I understand. I will be more careful."

"A good plan. But be sure not to reveal yourself around the dark one in this form, for she will recognise you instantly."

"I'm sure she will," Alejandro agreed.

"Have you found away to send her back yet?" the Red Queen asked.

"I have a theory," answered the Spaniard. "I think that if she lost he who was dearest to her, it might… drive her away."

She pondered this for a moment. "An interesting thought. How soon can he be eliminated?"

"He's a tricky fellow," Alejandro said. "It will require some time, but I'd say within the month."

"Excellent. You are dismissed."

Alejandro hesitated. "The dark one will be able to sense something wrong, unless she is… distracted."

The Red Queen raised her eyebrows. "You have a plan?"

He nodded. "Yes, I do. Though I'm going to require your permission to use the Ancients."

"I see." She pondered this for a moment. "You know the dangers of invoking their power, do you not?"

"Only too well," he replied bitterly.

The queen of hearts nodded. "I remember. Go now, but remember: They do not like their slumber to be disturbed."

"I am well aware of that," Alejandro said. "I take my leave. I am grateful for your aide." Concentrating, he morphed into a small, grey, gangly cat. The grin he wore reflected into his dark eyes, and he vanished in an instant.

----------

Alice looked around the library curiously. "This is your grandfather's library? Small, isn't it?"

"Not quite…" Alex walked forward a bit, and then turned the corner towards the area where she found the secret study. "Things are missing. For one thing, there's supposed to be a fireplace here," she motioned to a large decorative stone mural that showed two twin female girls back to back, one gothic, the other cast in a holy light, blood flowing from each of them, "instead of this image. Do you have any idea what it is?"

"Haven't got a clue," her friend replied. She walked up to it, feeling the stone engravings of the mural with her right hand. Something somewhere near the bottom of it caught her eye. "Hey, look, there's an inscription here."

Alex knelt down, reading the words, a look of confusion on her face. "_Avec la visage de tromperie et la masque de trahison, les jumelles du nuit vont s'éveiller. Chossisez-bien entre les deux ou tu dois rencontrer avec les Anciens. __AAA"_

"French," Alice observed. "I can't understand."

"Anciens… Like the Ancients?" Alex asked. "It sounds similar… Wish there was a way to-"

"With… er, the… the face of… deception… the face of deception…" Alice muttered, cutting Alex off while flipping through a small book, "and the… mask? Yeah, mask of… uh… treason… the twins of… the night… will awaken. Huh? Unemployment? Oh, no wait, that's _choose_. Choose well… er… between the two… or you will… you will… will what?" She turned a few more pages, squinting slightly at the small print. "Or you will meet with the… the Ancients."

"How do you know that?" Alex asked her, astonished. Alice held up the cover of the book, labelled _Collins French-English Dictionary_. "Oh, well, good thinking." She rubbed her forehead. "What does it mean, the twins of the night? And the Ancients? What else could they do apart from what they're already trying to do?"

Alice thought for a moment. "It's a prophecy."

Alex shook her head. "I don't think so. It said to choose between something. Kind of like a kinky instruction manual."

"No, it's a prophecy. It's forked, mind you, but it foretells something that has not yet come to pass…"

"How do you know that?" Alex asked.

"Simple," was her friend's reply. "If it had already happened, then it would say something of the result."

"'With the face of deception and the mask of treason, the twins of the night will awaken. Choose well between the two or you will face the Ancients.' " Alice repeated. "The face of deception and the mask of treason… A betrayal. The twins of the night… One dark, one light." She fingered the two girls on the mural. "Blood… Someone was wronged by blood. However, only one of the two is good. The other was wronged by the good one's doing. It seems like the person this prophecy was intended for needs to tell who's good, who can help them… or they face a creature that has the power to bring immense terror. The Ancients."

Alex shook her head in amazement. "How do you know all this?"

Alice smirked. "Try living with the Cheshire cat for most of your life. He talks in even more cryptic passages sometimes."

Alex laughed. "I don't doubt -" She cut herself off, frowning slightly, then turned around curiously. "What was that?"

"I don't know…" Alice had heard it too. From behind them, a sound like a combination of a hiss and a growl had uttered, followed by the shuffling of feet. A card guard was walking with a quickened pace in their direction, though something didn't seem right. The blonde's eyes widened as she realized what was odd about this scene.

"He doesn't have any weapons," she pointed out. "But… why not?"

"Whatever the reason," Alice said, taking out her sword, "it doesn't seem to be stopping him."

Indeed, the card guard was advancing on them as if with a strong desire to kill them. However, his first attack on Alex was feeble, giving her enough time to draw her sword and decapitate it before it could do much else. To both girls' surprise, the card guard did not fall. Instead, he stood as if nothing had happened, though he was shaking violently. There was a horrible ripping sound as something from inside him tore off his skin and burst out from the inside. The headless green creature gave an odd shout into the air before jumping right onto Alice's head.

"Get off me, you bloody beast!" she yelled, attempting to thrust the thing off her back. The creature, however, seemed not to want to let go. Alex swung at it with her sword while avoiding her friend. The force of the blow sent it flying off Alice's back, though it didn't appear to be wounded very badly, and decided to get revenge on Alex by jumping on her head instead. As the Roivas struggled with the being, a loud maniacal laughter rang in her ears. It was a painful sound, and it kept growing in volume. Alice seemed to be simultaneously affected by the laughter, for she had dropped her Gladius and was now covering her ears. A white light flashed around them and they found themselves at the beginning of the room.

"Bloody hell! What happened?" Alice wondered, rubbing her forehead.

Alex shook her head, but immediately regretted the action. "Not sure," she replied, trying to quell her headache but with no luck.

The dark-haired girl knelt down beside the corpse, which was significantly more mauled-looking than the original corpse had been. She gasped. "It's the Mayor!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Alex ran over to the body of the old man who had helped them earlier, fighting a wave of nausea that had come courtesy of the strong stench of blood emanating from the body. "Poor man," she commented. "I liked him."

"He was supposed to be doing something in here to help out," Alice said, frowning slightly. "Pity." She sighed. "I suppose he didn't get a chance to do it."

Alex tore her gaze off the mangled corpse to glance around the room thoughtfully. "No, actually, I think he did."

Alice looked up at the blonde. "What?"

Alex nodded. "Yes, I'm sure of it. This area over here -" she indicated the mural with the prophecy "- is still the same. But over here…" She ran to the other end of the room excitedly, motioning to a long but thin corridor. "This wasn't here before. Looks like the Mayor managed to point us in the right direction."

Alice stood up, her gaze now focused on the narrow doorway before them also. "You're… sure this is the way then?"

Alex nodded. "Positive."

The Liddell child frowned for a moment in deliberation, and then nodded. "All right then, what are we waiting for?" She eagerly grabbed her friend's hand and hurried down the corridor, dragging Alex in pursuit.

"Hang on, hang on," Alex protested, wrenching her arm free of Alice's grasp. "I can move by myself you know."

Alice gave her an apologetic look and replied, "Sorry, just in a bit of a hurry," before starting up the corridor again.

"Hey! Wait up!" Alex called after her friend, running to keep up. Books lined the walls in the small hallway, their titles those of witchcraft and magick. _I wouldn't be surprised if we found the Tome in here_, she found herself thinking. The pace they were travelling brought them to the end of the corridor rather quickly. More bookshelves met them at the end of it, giving them an option to turn either in either direction. Alice turned left, due to the fact that the other side held a dead end. From an open area on the right of the bookshelves, a card guard lunged at Alice, catching her off-guard.

"Bugger," she muttered as she felt the card guard's spade tear through her muscle, forcing her to drop her Gladius, which she had just unsheathed.

The card guard raised his spade again but this time faltered. A red bloodstain grew quickly on his chest, where Alex's vorpal blade was protruding. He dropped his spade and collapsed on the floor, dead. "I wonder why the Red Queen trusts these louts, they're pretty useless," Alex commented as she retrieved her knife from the fallen corpse.

"Thanks for that," Alice said. She put a hand over the bleeding gash in her arm. "Didn't see that one coming." A red glowing bottle of meta-essence formed from the card guard's body. The wounded girl picked it up and poured some of it over her arm, watching as the wound healed.

"'Please don't dawdle, Alice, we're very late indeed,'" Alex said amusedly, imitating the White Rabbit as she remembered him.

"Oh, ha ha," Alice said dryly. "Though you're right. We've wasted quite enough time here." She stored the rest of the red meta-essence in her pocket on her apron and continued forward. Alex rolled her eyes and followed.

They turned right soon ahead of that to see just how large the library happened to be. It was four stories high with bookcases lining each wall. The bookcases themselves were at least ten feet tall, holding thousands of books. "How are we supposed to find the book we need in this lot?" Alice wondered aloud.

Alex, meanwhile, was distracted by the arrival of two more card guards. "Kill now, think later," she told her friend. The red guards greeted them with a shower of deadly cards, which Alex returned in kind. One of the card guards dropped, his life transforming into a small bottle of red meta-essence. The other guard fell also, courtesy of Alice's Gladius. Alex took a bottle of meta-essence from the dead guards and used it to heal her wounds. "Odd sort of place, isn't it?" she commented. "I mean, who would need a library this big?"

"Or books that big," Alice added. "Look over there, at that large tome," she told her friend, pointing at a gigantic blue book, which seemed to be floating in a sort of blue mist. "I wonder what it's about. Seems as though it'd be rather hard to read."

The Roivas' attention turned to the book as well. "Strange," she said. "I don't see a title, do you?"

Alice ambled over to the book as well. "None whatsoever," she agreed. She tried to examine the book closer, but she had barely touched it when it opened up, its cover flat facing the ceiling, and flew up to float by the top floor. "Odd sort of book," she commented, looking back at Alice. "So, where to next?"

Alex's gaze traveled the room, finally fixing upon a set of three steps fixed on some sort of spiral mechanism, which led to the floor above. "There," she said, pointing. Alice nodded and followed Alex as she walked over there, both stepping on the platform.

The steps whirled their way onto the second floor of the place in no time. Alice fell off at the top due to Alex knocking into her by the force of the quick stop. They were greeted by two grey card guards, which the girls disposed of easily. Another giant blue book was floating in the same sort of mist, and when touched, it flew up, facedown, to the fourth level as the first one had. After looking around for a bit, however, they couldn't find any passage to the third floor.

"I give up," Alex sighed. "We're stuck here it seems."

"No, we must not stall. We will soon reach the top, and then -"

"And then what? Look, I'm sorry, but there must be thousands of books here. What are the chances of us finding it?"

"We will find it," Alice insisted. "We must find it. If you weren't so slow then maybe -"

"Do you ever listen to yourself when you talk?" She sighed again. "You're so impatient. Do you remember what the Cheshire cat said? Your rashness will get you killed one of these days."

Alice opened her mouth to retort, but someone else spoke before she could.

"She's right, you know," uttered a familiar voice.

Alice turned to face the Cheshire cat. "Oh, bloody hell. What do you want?"

"To impart some wisdom, as usual," answered the cat.

"Wisdom, ha!" the dark-haired girl muttered. "All right, on with it then."

The cat blinked once. "Trust is key, Alice. Know whom to trust and you won't have trouble. Unfortunately, some wish to disrupt such trusts. Your emotional attachment with them could change your perception of things." He turned to face Alex. "Your greatest strength is your ability to stay calm in all situations; use it. Remember though, reality is distorted here. Reason becomes suicide. Trust your instincts, not your head."

He began to fade, but Alice stopped him. "Say something that makes sense for once and help us get to the next floor."

The cat paused, and then grinned. "Steps to enlightenment brighten the way, but the steps are steep." He knocked over a bookshelf. "Take them one at a time."

Something about the cat's eyes as he vanished gave Alex a sense of déjà vu. She decided to push it to the back of her mind, however, as Alice seemed eager to move on. "Heh, the cat's not all bad then?"

"I suppose not." Alice was examining the makeshift staircase with some interest. "Is it strong enough, do you think?"

"Why don't you like him?" Alex asked suddenly. She had never understood her friend's dislike for the being, though she had never thought to ask.

"I don't like some of the things he says," she said simply. Testing the bookshelf, she found it sturdy but was still unsure of its stability. "Come on, we'd better-"

A shower of deadly cards interrupted their conversation. Alex returned them in kind, the sharp edges of the cards slicing open one of their attackers. Alice, in turn, had pulled out her Gladius and was fending off the card guards as well. Together they made quick work of them, sustaining little injuries that hardly required the meta-essence the card guards were providing.

The bookshelf under their feet started to shake, clearly not meant for support. It started to slide off, causing Alice to topple off and grab the edge of the third floor. The bookcase gave way completely and fell onto the ground floor. Alex fell also but couldn't manage to grab onto the edge. The only thing that prevented her from meeting a particularly painful death was Alice's hand grabbing onto her own. She threw Alex back onto the floor with some difficulty, and then pulled herself up.

"Seems as though we won't be going back down for some time," she commented, eyeing the fallen bookshelf. There were books everywhere, and the bookcase itself was ruined.

"Yeah," Alex agreed. "Thanks for that."

"Anytime." Her eyes flicked around the floor for a moment before spotting a telltale trail of blue mist behind one of the many bookshelves. "I found the next book," she told Alex, heading in the direction of the mist. Alex followed her.

"What do you suppose the books are for? They don't seem to be doing anything besides… float."

Alice reached the book first and touched it. "We shall see," she said quietly, watching the book fly up with the rest.

"Hm…" Alex walked over to a large platform that she hadn't noticed before due to the large tome. "Elevator, you think?"

"Seems about right," Alice agreed, joining her beside the platform.

"Only one way to find out," Alex muttered as she stepped onto the platform. It started to rise, slowly enough for Alice to hop on beside her. They both stepped off at the top, and then realized what the books had been for.

"We actually have to jump on these?" Alex checked nervously.

Alice nodded. "I'll go first."

The first book was easy to reach, as it was attached to the ledge of the floor. The second one, however, required a jump. Alice stepped onto the blue back of the first tome, finding it to be quite sturdy. With a deep breath, she leaped from it, landing clean on the next book. She jumped a second time; reaching the third and leaving the second book open to Alex. Alex watched her reach the fourth book safely before jumping herself.

She made the first jump without problems, but her second jump almost didn't make it. Having seen Alice nearly fall off while she'd make her last jump had done nothing to quell her nerves. Her third jump was a little different. She had overestimated the amount of space between the books and very nearly went flying off the other end. She managed to grab onto one of the pages before she could fall, which surprisingly didn't tear. Pulling herself up onto the book, she saw Alice staring intently at a book on a ledge. She took a deep breath and made her last leap with no trouble. She stood up, brushed herself off and turned to Alice, saying, "So what have we got here?"

"It's our book. Though it is rather puzzling. There's no lock, but it won't open. It's stuck."

Alex pondered on this for a moment. "Treat it like a Chinese box or a stubborn lid. A tap in the right spot might do the trick."

"You're beginning to sound like the Cheshire cat," Alice informed her with a grin as she examining the book, looking for a lock or lever. Alex smiled too. She wasn't surprised that it was hard to figure out, as it was just as big as the platform books. Alice stared at the book for a moment, and then pushed it straight off the edge. It hit the ground with a thump and opened up flat on the floor.

"You call that a tap!" Alex asked, exasperated. "Luckily I didn't suggest force, you might have pulverized it."

"It's open," Alex stated.

"True. But now we have another problem." She gestured to the book lying on the floor, only feet away from the wrecked bookshelf. "How are we supposed to read it like this?" At those words, the four books flew up and made two descending platforms on either side leading back to the third floor, a silent answer to her question.

They descended the right side, but then realized their other problem: they had no way of getting down to the second level. Alice peered over the edge of the floor, staring at the ruined bookshelf. "Bugger. I'd forgotten there's no way back down."

Alex wasn't looking at the bookshelf. Her attention was instead focused on where the bookshelf had originally stood. The floor below it was covered in books, which would be a good way to break a fall. "There's one way." Alice turned to her friend and, seeing where she was looking, shrugged and lowered herself down onto the pile of books. "Heh, you read my mind," Alex said, following suit.

It wasn't hard to make their way back onto the first floor, though they had to wait a bit for the spiral elevator to fetch them. The way to the fallen book, however, proved to be difficult, as the bookshelf blocked most of their path.

The book itself was intact and had thankfully fallen upright. Since they had no idea where in the book they needed to look, they had to lift half the book's worth of pages to reach the index.

"Hm, skin colour changer, jumbo grow, animal transformer…" Alex muttered, scanning the margin. "Hey, there's a concoction in here for making cards. Page four."

"Could be useful," said Alice, "but there's no time to read it. Could you rip it out?"

"I can try," Alex replied. Turning to the page, she found that the instructions were long and the list of ingredients longer, listed in some form of a poem. Wasting no time, she took out her knife and cut along the edge of the oversized page. It fell out, sliding down the page. "All right, you try and find the potion we're looking for, and I'll try and make this guy portable." She indicated the torn page. Alice nodded, flipping back to the index.

Alex stared at the paper for a moment before trying to fold it in half. All that accomplished was that the paper flipped over, as it was thick and very difficult to fold. The other side of the parchment revealed something entitled _Changing the Uses of Meta-Essence_. Reading it over, she realized it was a spell. It required three runes and something called a circle of power. "Circle of power?" she asked herself quietly. She shrugged. Deciding that the best course of action was to treat it like a poster, she pulled her hair elastic out of her hair, her blonde locks falling down to meet her ribcage. After rolling the page, pulled it on and brought it down to the middle.

"Found it," she heard Alice say.

"Do we need to take it with us?" Alex asked, regretting that she didn't wait before using her hair tie.

Alice shook her head. "It's only four lines long. 'Mushrooms, poppies, sugar and spice. All those things are very nice. When combined the proper mixture makes a getting-small elixir.'"

"Cute," Alex commented. "Are they all poems?"

"I think so." Gravity took control and a few of the pages flipped over to the right. Alice found herself looking down at a photograph of a chandelier, which stretched in and out of proportion. Then she felt the familiar sensation of a hook behind her navel as a vortex of colours surrounded her and Alex. The next thing she knew, she was standing inside the secret study of Alex's grandfather's mansion, staring at the very same chandelier picture on top of the words 'Chapter Complete'.


End file.
